Alaska's Mount Redoubt Closer to Eruption

All eyes have been on Mount Redoubt in Alaska, waiting on pins and needels for a possible eruption. Geologists have been actively monitoring a hole in the glacier on the north side of it and this hole doubled in size overnight. They have also noticed steam emitting from the hole. Yesterday, geologist confirmed that the area was a fumarole.

A fumarole (Latin fumus, smoke) is an opening in Earth's (or any other astronomical body's) crust, often in the neighborhood of volcanoes, which emits steam and gases such as carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, hydrochloric acid, and hydrogen sulfide. Fumaroles may occur along tiny cracks or long fissures, in chaotic clusters or fields, and on the surfaces of lava flows and thick deposits of pyroclastic flows.

The geologists also found water streaming down the glacier which indicates that the heat from the Earth's magma may be reaching all the way up the mountain which will eventually result in the eruption.

AVO continues to observe potential activity with seismic, satellite and radar data. The volcano has not erupted.

An AVO observation flight this afternoon reported no sign of ash emission, but observed significant steaming from a new melt depression at the mouth of the summit crater near the vent area of the 1989-90 eruption.

The Aviation Color Code remains at ORANGE and the Volcano Alert Level remains at WATCH.

Geologists said they have been recording quakes up to magnitude 2.1 but not at the frequency that preceded the last two eruptions in 1989 and 1990.

"We're looking for an increase of seismicity to match the precursor activity," they said. "We haven't seen that yet."

More Information: AVO